I recommend that if you have a good relationship with your nurses ask one to hang around. A nurse who witnesses this harassment can act quickly with real power. We have a chain of command that reacts to incidents.
Nurses can also limit the scope of reaction.

This is the joy of working as a team. You have our back and we have yours.
Be kind to the nurses…you never know when you may need us to kick someones ass on your behalf.

My medical school experienced were peppered with things like this, but nowhere as bad. I really wonder if it is more than other industries, but I think it is: Doctors get to control people -> attracts a**holes who like to control people. It is, unfortunately, the same with priests that get to hang around kids. A subset are terrible individuals.

I agree with not taking it to superiors, who do nothing. I have written two complaints during my entire training (now almost an attending) and nothing happened either time. If I were in a case as severe as yours, I would also recommend getting a lawyer, and just bullying them into change back. Nothing else will likely work.

That, and then just getting the heck out of there if the culture is throughout that institution. Spread the word — post the name of the institution!

when we speak of sexual harassment, understand that it is a serious allegation that IS taken seriously at most institutions. let’s be clear on what is considered sexual harassment.

Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination, which is a violation of Title VI I of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. The EEOC’s guidelines define two types of sexual harassment: “quid pro quo” and “hostile environment.”

“QUID PRO QUO” SEXUAL HARASSMENT - Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute “quid pro quo” sexual harassment when submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of an individual’s employment, or submission to of rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such an individual.

“HOSTILE ENVIRONMENT” SEXUAL HARASSMENT - Unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature constitute “hostile environment” sexual harassment when such conduct has the purpose or effect of unreasonably interfering with an individual’s work performance or creating an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment. The central inquiry is whether the conduct “unreasonably interfered with an individual’s work performance” or created “an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment.” The EEOC will look at the following factors to determine whether an environment is hostile: whether the conduct was verbal or physical or both; how frequently it was repeated; whether the conduct was hostile or patently offensive; whether the alleged harasser was a co-worker or supervisor; whether others joined in perpetrating the harassment; and (whether the harassment was directed at more than one individual. No one factor controls. An assessment is made based upon the totality of the circumstances.

Is one incident considered sexual harassment? In “quid pro quo” cases, a single sexual advance may constitute harassment if it is linked to the granting or denial of employment or employment benefits. In contrast, unless the conduct is quite severe, a single incident or isolated incidents of offensive sexual conduct or remarks generally do not create a “hostile environment.” A hostile environment claim usually requires a showing of a pattern of offensive conduct. However, a single, unusually severe incident of harassment may be sufficient to constitute a Title VII violation; the more severe the harassment, the less need to show a repetitive series of incidents. This is particularly true when the harassment is physical. For example, the EEOC will presume that the unwelcome, intentional touching of a charging party’s intimate body areas is sufficiently offensive to alter the condition of his/her working environment and constitute a “hostile environment.”

If someone believes that there was sexual harassment, the victim should directly inform the harasser that the conduct is unwelcome and must stop. It is important for the victim to communicate that the conduct is unwelcome, particularly when the alleged harasser may have some reason to believe that the advance may be welcomed. However, a victim of harassment need not always confront his/her harasser directly, so long as his/her conduct demonstrates that the harasser’s behavior is unwelcome. The victim should also use any employer complaint mechanism or grievance system available.

sexual harassment is taken very seriously and can be cause for privileges being revoked.

I once filed an incident report against the attending because he was violating students’ work-hour rules. The deans managed to do a fairly convincing job of portraying themselves as angry administrators who would quickly resolve the problem. That was six months ago. Nothing has been done to this attending, he continues to force students to stay on the wards even when they are post-call.

I wish I could say that once I did higher up in the ranks I would take a stand against inappropriate behavior by residents in attendings, but unfortunately I plan on leaving academia the moment I finish residency. I think that a lot of us are so frustrated by the way that universities are handled that we bail out at the first opportunity. Thus, medical schools get taken over by cowards who are too afraid to take a stance in the first place.